DeSOTO – U.S. Rep. Eddie Bernice Johnson shook her head after watching the 44-minute dashcam video of a DeSoto police squad forcing a black family face down in the street to be handcuffed.
“That was brutal,’’ Johnson said of six officers’ heated response to a disturbance call in August that had calmed down before they arrived. “You’ve got to defuse and leave.’’
Johnson, whose district covers DeSoto and who has long pushed for ways to curb excessive police force, told The Dallas Morning Newsthat the video suggests the predominantly black Dallas suburb of 53,000 needs a citizen review board to examine police actions, as well as more training for its officers.
Her criticisms, shared in an interview with The News, are the first from a lawmaker since DeSoto officials released the footage following an investigation by The News this month. The mom, Sammie Anderson, filed a brutality complaint that also alleges the police falsely arrested her sons.
Warning: this video includes images of violence and strong language. It has been edited for length and clarity and to remove personal information such as birth dates.
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